The 2014-15 TV season officially kicked off Monday night as every network but The CW debuted a slew of new and returning fare.
Fox’s Batman prequel Gotham got off to a strong start airing in the highly competitive 8 p.m. hour with a 3.2 rating with adults 18-49 and 8 million total viewers, according to Nielsen overnight numbers. The 3.2 was up 39% from what Bones debuted in that same time slot last fall and nearly matched what drama Sleepy Hollow drew for its premiere on the same night last fall (3.5). Airing out of Gotham, the aforementioned Sleepy Hollow returned for its sophomore season to a 2.0 rating, down 17% from its finale last year and well below its series debut (the show gets a heavy DVR lift however). Overall, Fox finished in third for the night with a 2.6 rating/7 share.
With the return of The Voice and The Blacklist, NBC led the night in the demo with a 3.7/11.
The Voice, which debuted new coaches Pharrell and Gwen Stefani, returned to a 3.9 from 8-10 p.m., down 20% from last fall cycle’s debut and the lowest of any of its fall premieres (4.9 in the prelims, but went up to a 5.1 in the nationals). The Blacklist came back with a 3.4 rating, nearly matching the 3.8 it drew for its series debut and up 31% vs last May’s finale.
CBS’ rookie Scorpion got off to a strong start, buoyed by the temporary return of The Big Bang Theory to its old night.
The sitcom drew a 5.3 rating for its 8 p.m. premiere, down two tenths vs last year’s debut on a Thursday, but up 43% vs what How I Met Your Mother drew in that slot last year. The second episode at 8:30 p.m. was up a tenth to a 5.4. At 9 p.m., Scorpion opened with a 3.3 rating, up 22% over last year’s 9 p.m. hour that featured comedies Mom and 2 Broke Girls. The season finale of Under the Dome drew a 1.8 at 10 p.m., up two tenths from last week.
CBS took second in the demo with a 3.5/10, but nipped NBC for the total viewer crown with over 13 million.
ABC previewed its own new drama Forever to a 1.5 rating at 10 p.m. with over 8 million total viewers; both were well below what the time slot’s usual occupant Castle drew last year (2.2 rating, 11.46 million total viewers). Forever moves to its regular night on Tuesday. Leading into Forever, Dancing With the Stars dipped 17% to a 2.0, as the network took fourth with a 1.8/5.
The CW rounded out the evening with a 0.3/1. America’s Next Top Model posted a 0.4 rating in the demo.
